Agnes was smart enough to figure out why she was brought to Shadowford, why not Mary Anne and Courtney? And I’d already learned firsthand what that knowledge could do to someone who wasn’t chosen to join the Order. It was enough to make Agnes want me dead. Was one of the other girls living here just as angry?
Whoever took Caroline really wanted me. I was sure of it. I pulled a notebook from my bookbag and started a list. At the top, I wrote MOTIVE in capital letters.
Who had motive to hurt or kill me?
The Others went to the top of the list. After all, I’d killed three of their top local members. That wasn’t exactly public knowledge or anything, but I couldn’t be sure no one knew what happened that night at the old Brighton Hospital. The Others seemed to think all demons were evil and any witch who joined with a demon was equally evil. They wanted to end the Order of Shadows, and for them, killing me would be a huge victory. Yes, they had motive for sure.
Mary Anne and Courtney were next on the list with a big question mark beside their names. I needed to dig deeper into their past to try to find out if some hidden motive lurked in there somewhere. Plus, I needed to find out just how much they both knew about this town and why they were brought to Shadowford in the first place.
I tapped my pencil against the edge of the notebook. Who else might have a motive to want me dead? After last night, it was clear that Mrs. Shadowford didn’t want me here, but wasn’t she a member of the local Order? If she went through her initiation here in Peachville, then her life depended on mine. That automatically ruled her out, unless she was suicidal.
I wrote her name on the list anyway. There was always a possibility she was never joined with a demon from the Peachville gate. Maybe Jackson would know.
I spent the rest of the morning trying to think of any reason someone would want me dead. A morbid task for a cold, dreary morning. When all was said and done, I had a total of 5 entries on my list.
MOTIVE
1. The Others
2. Mary Anne and/or Courtney ??
3. Mrs. Shadowford (Peachville demon gate?)
4. Rival demon gate with reason to hate Peachville
5. Some mystery person (Crow?)
Overall, it wasn’t the most impressive list. There were just too many unknowns at play. The jeans I wore the night before were crumpled up on the floor. I leaned down and fished the black feather from the pocket.
Somehow, that feather was the key.
Zara
A loud knock stirred me from my thoughts. I shoved the black feather under my pillow just as the door swung open.
I was expecting Courtney or Ella Mae, but the girl at the door was a stranger. Her stunning porcelain skin and white-blonde hair made her look like an angel. Or a ghost. Even her eyes looked slightly transparent, they were such a light color of misty blue. She was holding a long silver box in her hand.
She smiled and her eyes lit up. “May I come in?”
“Sure,” I said. I stood and put my hands in my pockets. I was hardly dressed to meet new people with my fuzzy pajama pants and a plain black tanktop. “I’m Harper.”
“I know who you are, silly.”
Um, okay. “And you are?”
The girl giggled and the sound was like tinkling glass. If I believed in them, I’d say she was some kind of fairy with her dainty features and soft voice. “I’m not used to having to introduce myself,” she said. She held her small hand out to me. “My name is Zara Winter.”
Her hand felt like cold marble. Strong and delicate at the same time. There was considerable power flowing through her veins. I felt it surge through me as our hands touched. It was that same sort of static electricity I’d felt before with some witches, only more pure.
How could someone so young be so powerful? She couldn’t have been more than fourteen years old.
“I found this outside your door,” she said. “A present from an admirer?”
I crinkled my nose. She handed the box to me and I shoved it under
Whoever took Caroline really wanted me. I was sure of it. I pulled a notebook from my bookbag and started a list. At the top, I wrote MOTIVE in capital letters.
Who had motive to hurt or kill me?
The Others went to the top of the list. After all, I’d killed three of their top local members. That wasn’t exactly public knowledge or anything, but I couldn’t be sure no one knew what happened that night at the old Brighton Hospital. The Others seemed to think all demons were evil and any witch who joined with a demon was equally evil. They wanted to end the Order of Shadows, and for them, killing me would be a huge victory. Yes, they had motive for sure.
Mary Anne and Courtney were next on the list with a big question mark beside their names. I needed to dig deeper into their past to try to find out if some hidden motive lurked in there somewhere. Plus, I needed to find out just how much they both knew about this town and why they were brought to Shadowford in the first place.
I tapped my pencil against the edge of the notebook. Who else might have a motive to want me dead? After last night, it was clear that Mrs. Shadowford didn’t want me here, but wasn’t she a member of the local Order? If she went through her initiation here in Peachville, then her life depended on mine. That automatically ruled her out, unless she was suicidal.
I wrote her name on the list anyway. There was always a possibility she was never joined with a demon from the Peachville gate. Maybe Jackson would know.
I spent the rest of the morning trying to think of any reason someone would want me dead. A morbid task for a cold, dreary morning. When all was said and done, I had a total of 5 entries on my list.
MOTIVE
1. The Others
2. Mary Anne and/or Courtney ??
3. Mrs. Shadowford (Peachville demon gate?)
4. Rival demon gate with reason to hate Peachville
5. Some mystery person (Crow?)
Overall, it wasn’t the most impressive list. There were just too many unknowns at play. The jeans I wore the night before were crumpled up on the floor. I leaned down and fished the black feather from the pocket.
Somehow, that feather was the key.
Zara
A loud knock stirred me from my thoughts. I shoved the black feather under my pillow just as the door swung open.
I was expecting Courtney or Ella Mae, but the girl at the door was a stranger. Her stunning porcelain skin and white-blonde hair made her look like an angel. Or a ghost. Even her eyes looked slightly transparent, they were such a light color of misty blue. She was holding a long silver box in her hand.
She smiled and her eyes lit up. “May I come in?”
“Sure,” I said. I stood and put my hands in my pockets. I was hardly dressed to meet new people with my fuzzy pajama pants and a plain black tanktop. “I’m Harper.”
“I know who you are, silly.”
Um, okay. “And you are?”
The girl giggled and the sound was like tinkling glass. If I believed in them, I’d say she was some kind of fairy with her dainty features and soft voice. “I’m not used to having to introduce myself,” she said. She held her small hand out to me. “My name is Zara Winter.”
Her hand felt like cold marble. Strong and delicate at the same time. There was considerable power flowing through her veins. I felt it surge through me as our hands touched. It was that same sort of static electricity I’d felt before with some witches, only more pure.
How could someone so young be so powerful? She couldn’t have been more than fourteen years old.
“I found this outside your door,” she said. “A present from an admirer?”
I crinkled my nose. She handed the box to me and I shoved it under
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